Turn PNG files into AVIF in your own browser

Content last reviewed:2026-09-30

Add your PNG files and download AVIF files with their transparency kept. In our measurement a high-resolution camera photo went from 11.1 MB to 786.2 KB, while the icon with transparency came out 63 percent larger.

Files in queue

Add PNG files on the left to start converting to AVIF.

What is PNG and what is AVIF?

PNG is a lossless format: it keeps every pixel of the image, stores full transparency and opens in every browser[1]. W3C approved the third edition of the specification on 24 June 2025. It describes lossless storage by the deflate method, 8 or 16 bits per colour channel, an alpha channel and APNG animation[2].

AVIF stores an image with the AV1 codec inside a HEIF container[1], and the Alliance for Open Media maintains the specification[3]. The format has a full alpha channel, and current versions of Chrome, Edge, Firefox, Opera and Safari open it[4].

Turning PNG into AVIF pays off with photographs: the high-resolution camera photo went from 11.1 MB to 786.2 KB in our measurement. With a small graphic that carries transparency it goes the other way and the file grows, which the table below shows plainly.

A graphics tablet with a stylus and a mouse on a desk mat — AVIF suits large photographs on a page, while small icons are better left as PNG. Photo: Workperch, Unsplash.

How do you convert PNG to AVIF?

Drag your files onto the Add files area, or click it to pick them from your disk. Any number of PNG files is fine, each up to 100 MB.
Set the Set AVIF quality slider between 60 and 95 percent; it starts at 80 and the current value sits beside its name.
Click Convert. Every finished file gets the Done status.
Save one file with Download, or all of them with Download all, which packs several into a ZIP archive. Only the extension changes, to .avif.

The queue shows every file with its Before and After weight, the difference in percent, and the batch totals.

Move the slider and finished files go back to Pending, so the next Convert saves them at the new value.

Remove takes one file out of the queue, Clear all empties it.

Everything happens in your own browser: the PNG file is read by an image element, and the AVIF is saved by the libavif library, which also runs in the browser.

How much does a file weigh before and after PNG to AVIF conversion?

Eight PNG files went through this converter at the default quality of 80 percent: two Unsplash photos at different resolutions, a product photo, a leaf macro, a real screenshot with text, a logo and an icon with a transparent background, and a page of text at scanner resolution. Weights are written the way the tool prints them in the queue: in kilobytes and megabytes of 1024 bytes, with the same rounding. We took the measurement ourselves on 11 September 2026 in a Chromium browser, and the result depends on the content of the image, so your file may come out differently.

Test file	Dimensions in pixels	PNG	AVIF	Change
Landscape photo	1920 × 1280	3.06 MB	282.9 KB	11.1 times smaller
High-resolution camera photo	4000 × 2667	11.1 MB	786.2 KB	14.5 times smaller
Product photo on a light background	1200 × 1200	2.12 MB	287.9 KB	7.5 times smaller
Leaf macro with fine detail	1600 × 2015	6.52 MB	1.17 MB	5.6 times smaller
Screenshot with text	1440 × 900	100.5 KB	80.3 KB	20 percent smaller
Logo with a transparent background	1024 × 1024	52.1 KB	39.2 KB	25 percent smaller
Icon with transparency	256 × 256	6.57 KB	10.7 KB	63 percent larger
Text page, as from a scanner	1654 × 2339	240.1 KB	251.2 KB	5 percent larger

The weight of your own file before and after conversion sits in the Before and After fields of the queue.

When is an AVIF lighter than a PNG, and when heavier?

Photographs go down the hardest: the high-resolution camera photo at 4000 × 2667 pixels went from 11.1 MB to 786.2 KB, and the landscape photo came out 11.1 times smaller. AVIF stores the image with the AV1 codec, which was built for video[3], and a photograph full of fine detail is where that shows most.

With small files there is nothing to gain. The icon with transparency at 256 × 256 pixels came out 63 percent larger, and the text page, as from a scanner came out 5 percent larger. Writing an AVIF costs more at that size than its compression gives back, so icons and small interface graphics are better left as PNG. The screenshot with text (1440 × 900) came out 20 percent smaller.

It is worth knowing that at the default setting of both tools, 80 percent, the PNG to WebP converter gave us a lighter file on all eight images. If weight alone is what counts, start with WebP and keep AVIF for the cases where you want to go lower at a high quality setting. The Set AVIF quality slider changes the file weight and the pixel dimensions stay as they were; you set smaller ones in the Helios editor. The way back is the AVIF to PNG converter.

PNG versus AVIF: how do the formats differ?

The table gathers the properties that decide which format suits a photograph and which suits a small graphic.

Property	PNG	AVIF
Storage	lossless, by the deflate method	lossy, with the AV1 codec
Transparency	yes, a full alpha channel	yes, a full alpha channel
Bits per colour channel	8 or 16	8 from our converter
Animation in the file	yes, as APNG	yes, as an image sequence
Browser support	every version of every browser	current versions of every browser
Weight gained	none, this is the baseline	large with photographs, none with icons

PNG according to the W3C specification[2], AVIF according to the Alliance for Open Media[3] and the MDN guide[1], browser support according to Can I use[4]. The weight gained comes from our own measurement in the table above.

Which PNG files does the converter take?

We checked every row on files put through the converter on 15 September 2026. The right column says what you get.

The file you add	What the converter writes in AVIF
A photo or graphic saved as PNG	an AVIF at the same pixel dimensions
A PNG with a transparent background	an AVIF with a transparent background, because the format carries an alpha channel
A PNG with a semi-transparent shadow or glow	an AVIF with the semi-transparent shadow kept as it was
A PNG with 16 bits per colour channel	an AVIF with 8 bits per channel, because that is what the browser canvas hands over
An animated PNG (APNG)	the first frame of the animation, and the queue carries a note: This file is animated, so only the first frame is saved.
A file with EXIF data, for example a rotated photo	an AVIF with no EXIF data, but in the orientation stored in that data
A file larger than 100 MB	the message File is too large (max 100 MB).
A damaged file, or text with a .png extension	the Error status and the message Failed to load the image.

Files in other formats are skipped as they are added, with the message: Add PNG files. Files in other formats were skipped.

What happens to transparency, colours and EXIF data?

Transparency reaches AVIF in full, semi-transparent pixels included. The AVIF file is put together here by the libavif library compiled to WebAssembly, so the image never leaves your device.

EXIF data does not reach the AVIF file, so the date, the device model and the coordinates of the place disappear from it. The orientation stored in that data is applied. The colour comes out on 8 bits per channel, because that is what the browser canvas we read the pixels from hands over[1].

Storage with the AV1 codec is lossy and cannot be undone, so it is worth keeping the PNG originals. A file that opens everywhere comes from the PNG to JPG converter, and you assemble a page with several images in the PNG to PDF converter.

Convert other files to AVIF

JPG to AVIF WebP to AVIF SVG to AVIF BMP to AVIF GIF to AVIF HEIC to AVIF TIFF to AVIF

Convert PNG to other formats

PNG to JPG PNG to WebP PNG to BMP PNG to GIF PNG to TIFF PNG to PDF PNG to Base64

Sources

Image file type and format guide — MDN Web Docs
Portable Network Graphics (PNG) Specification (Third Edition) — W3C
AV1 Image File Format (AVIF) — Alliance for Open Media
AVIF image format — Can I use

The file sizes in the tables were measured by running finished images through this converter in a browser, and we report them the way the tool counts them. What the page says about either format rests on the sources listed above.

Content last reviewed: September 30, 2026 · written and checked by the Arteon team

Common questions about turning PNG into AVIF

How do you turn PNG into AVIF for free?

Drag your PNG files onto the Add files area, click Convert and save the result with Download all. The converter is free, needs no account, and your files stay on your own device.

Does AVIF keep a transparent background?

Yes. AVIF carries a full alpha channel, so a transparent background and a semi-transparent shadow come out the same as in the PNG file.

Why did my AVIF come out larger than the PNG?

That happens with small files. In our measurement the icon with transparency at 256 × 256 pixels came out 63 percent larger and the text page, as from a scanner came out 5 percent larger. For images like those it is better to stay with PNG.

Will an AVIF open for everyone?

Current versions of Chrome, Edge, Firefox, Opera and Safari display AVIF. Older browsers and some graphics programs will not open it, so JPG is the safer pick for sending by email.

Is AVIF lighter than WebP?

Not in our measurement. At the default setting of both converters, 80 percent, the WebP file came out smaller on all eight images, the photographs among them. The weight table on the PNG to WebP page carries those numbers. AVIF earns its place where you raise the quality setting instead.

Which slider value should I pick?

Start at the default 80 percent and look at the result zoomed in. Raise it for a photograph full of detail, and you can lower it for an image used as a page background. The weight of every file sits in the queue.

Is the conversion slower than to WebP?

Yes, writing with the AV1 codec takes more computing and a large batch of photos shows it. While it runs, a file keeps the Processing… status and the queue shows the progress of the whole batch.

Are the files uploaded to a server?

No. The PNG file is read by the browser on your own device, and the AVIF is written by the libavif library running in that same browser. Nothing of them is left once you close the page.